St Ann protesters out of order

Mass protest action should be a last resort, but occasions seemingly warrant its use in drawing attention to, in many cases, the intransigence of public and private authorities.

So, residents of Mount Edgecombe, near Runaway Bay, St Ann, who seemingly have untenable issues with both the Jamaica Public Service Company (JPS) and the National Water Commission, rose up early in the morning to block the road at the time of greatest dislocation to the travelling public.

On Friday, September 12, the anniversary of the devastating Hurricane Gilbert, the protesters mounted roadblocks causing immense dislocation that affected children going to school, people going to work, and innocent others just wanting to do personal business.

But, there's nothing strange about roadblocks in Jamaica; they're a strategy of people demanding 'justice', but, protesters from Mount Edgecombe took roadblocks to a shocking new low. And we hope people are going to be hauled before the courts for such senseless acts of vandalism.

Mobs protesting against JPS and the National Works Agency used chainsaws to fell many large trees across the road, preventing traverse at many points in the vicinity of three to five kilometres away from their places of residence.

This was a senseless act of barbarism perpetrated against the environment by selfish, unthinking people.